Factoid of the Day

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Sun, 12 Feb 12 08:27:00 UT

According to Colorado State University's Janice Moore and Chris Reiber, a biomedical anthropologist at Binghamton University, in New York, there is a strong possibility that the flu virus might boost our desire to socialize. Why? Because it spreads through close physical contact, often before symptoms emerge -- meaning that it must find a new host quickly.

To explore this hunch, Moore and Reiber tracked 36 subjects who received a flu vaccine, reasoning that it contains many of the same chemical components as the live virus and would thus cause the subjects' immune systems to react as if they'd encountered the real pathogen.

The difference in the subjects' behavior before and after vaccination was pronounced: the flu shot had the effect of nearly doubling the number of people with whom the participants came in close contact during the brief window when the live virus was maximally contagious.

"People who had very limited or simple social lives were suddenly deciding that they needed to go out to bars or parties, or invite a bunch of people over," says Reiber. "This happened with lots of our subjects. It wasn't just one or two outliers."

So there you have it. A made-to-order excuse for the next episode of pub-crawling, should you need one. And maybe also an explanation for why people who are coming down sick with the flu insist on coming to work anyway, thus sharing their misery with everyone in the office.

[Paraphrased from article in the Atlantic, "How Your Cat is Making You Crazy" by Kathleen McAuliffe.]

Clash

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Sat, 11 Feb 12 10:01:00 UT

My roommate and I are very different personalities. She is hard-edged and absolutistic about what she perceives, what she believes to be right, and it becomes an emotional issue not amenable to rational discussion.

I'm the kind of person to see many sides of an issue. There are very few absolute rights and wrongs, in my view, and even when there is an absolute wrong (child abuse, for instance, in our most recent discussion), there are circumstances surrounding it which should be brought to light. The whole truth should be known, not as mitigating events, but as fact leading to a more complete understanding.

That drives her right up a wall, since she thinks I am arguing on behalf of the wrongdoer. I'm not. I'm saying that there are always more things, more facets than first appear, and if you're going to condemn someone or some practice, you need to look at the big picture.

Furthermore, one of our most basic principles is that someone is innocent, until proven guilty. She is absolutely sure that an event took place as reported in the news media and she will brook no discussion. I am privately convinced that in fact the event did take place as described, but the rights of everyone must be honored until the court of law prescribes punishment, and all the facts be known, as best as we can know them.

If, as it happens so often, the wrongdoer escapes punishment, there's not much we can do about it, except to try to prevent further occurrences.

So she and I butt heads all the time. She issues an absolute condemnation, and I say, look at the big picture. There may be more to this than meets the eye. And even if you're right, we don't do lynchings. We process the alleged perpetrator through the legal system.

She just cannot deal with my approach. She is hard-edged, condemnatory, emotional and shrill. Totally convinced of her rightness in the matter.

Maybe she thinks she isn't being heard. I'm going to try to agree with her, reflect back what she is saying and see if that helps her to calm down enough to hear me. Or I'm just going to shut up and nod.

Her father, a friend of mine, is much the same. Like father, like daughter. But with such good hearts, much is forgiven.

Prep for Cleaning

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Sat, 11 Feb 12 09:05:00 UT

Putting stuff away, finding extra vacuum cleaner bags, putting more stuff away--at some point I'll just have to tell M (the cleaning person) to ignore some places, like my computer desk. It's hopeless. Maybe some day....

But other places, like the bedroom, it's easy to put stuff away that I've just left piled on the rocking chair and dresser.

I'm going to come home to a clean house and I'm delighted.
Later, y'all.

Visiting Day

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Fri, 10 Feb 12 18:33:00 UT

Most of the day was taken up running errands and visiting my friends at work. The connections and relationships built over 20 to 30 years are still strong and it was a pleasure to renew our friendships.

We talked far longer than any of us were aware, until Anita mentioned that it was nearly time for her to leave to go home (she finishes her day at 3:30) goodness, where did the time go?

There were so many people to hug and share with the doings of the last few weeks, that the time just flew by. The only person missing was Dan Gent, and I'm hoping we can get together for lunch one of these days. We email and text all the time, which helps keep our friendship strong.

Gorgeous weather, high of 77 degrees. The kind of weather that brings people from the northern states in droves to sunny southern California. Would that it were always so pleasant here, but alas, we are basically desert and the heat will return all too soon.

Just finished a book called "The Prophet Motive," a thriller about cults and their practices. Of course the Good Guys win (how else could there be sequels?), but their experiences are harrowing. It kept me up most of the night reading the last 1/3 of the book.

It misses out on an "excellent" rating because of some truly sophomoric similes, clunky dialog, and at least one (to me) wholly unbelievable scene, as it would be to anyone who knows anything about saddling and riding horses. In spite of the writing flaws, though, the story rings with authenticity. I recommend it (with reservations).

Tomorrow, for the first time in my life, I'm going to have someone come and do the heavy housework. At my age, I'm just not up to scrubbing floors and cleaning ovens. I feel a certain amount of guilt (good old New England self reliance and Puritan Ethic), but the need for a clean house is overriding my reluctance.

Do you suppose "godliness" is next on the agenda? Not hardly.

Routine and Creativity

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Thu, 9 Feb 12 08:00:00 UT

Looking back...

on those days when I woke up late, running short on time, rushing to get everything together, just making it to work on the dot...

and having to bathe and dress my husband, feed him breakfast and see to his medications before rushing off to work full-time...

those days my ability to come up with creative solutions or innovative approaches really was diminished. Especially if on the way to work I listened to the news, all the bad and evil stuff in the world first thing in the day.

It was as though everything had jangled together and I was constantly rushing from one task to another, not quite ready for anything. Definitely not conducive to creativity, and all day I continued to feel as though I was playing catch up.

After my husband went into VA assisted living, I arrived at a routine that much improved my day. Getting up 15 minutes earlier than the absolute last minute allowed me to mumble around. Not Neatherthal Man, but Meanderthal Woman. I could dress leisurely, have a cup of coffee, let my brain wander where it would.

I found myself making connections for solutions, imagining possibilities where there were none apparent the day before, experiencing insights into knotty problems. It's as though my brain had time and space to rummage around and get creative.

One of the nicest things about retirement is that I can be like that every morning. As much as for anything else, I am grateful for the time to get up when I'm awake and face the day when I'm ready.

Breathe. Imagine. Be present.

Dicotyledons

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Wed, 8 Feb 12 07:03:00 UT

Gorgeous weather this morning. Brilliant sunshine, clear skies, soft rain-washed air. Southern California at its sparkling best.

About 10 days ago the seeds went into the ground, and here and there I see tiny feathery seed leaves poking into the air, in pairs (which is why they're called dicotyledons). It's strange to see this extensive bare patch of ground populated (if you look closely) by the bits of green, here and there.

The red ones are beets, of course. Mostly red, anyway. Nearly the same color as the dirt, they are really hard to see.

I get so excited at the promise given by tiny plants obeying the commands of the cells in the seed to form leaves, stems, etc. The promise of growth, the promise of photosynthesis, the earth's promise of renewal. I am thankful to be alive, part of the web of life.

I can't be blase about the most basic process of all; I find myself wanting to respond in kind. (Is it spring yet?)

Raindrops Keep Fallin'

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Tue, 7 Feb 12 09:11:00 UT

The rain is so light that you can almost hear the spaces between the raindrops, microscopic silences between each little plop, plop.

I hope the garden is enjoying the unpolluted water. None of the seeds has sprouted yet. I've watered them every day from the hose, city water spiced up with chlorine/fluorine. You can actually smell it when you run the faucet full on.

The additives may be "safe" according to some government agency, but I'm uncomfortable drinking chemicals in my water. I grew up on well water, and that's my standard for H2O. Rain water comes in second for purity and taste.

Yes, we filter our drinking water in a Brita pitcher, but fluorine ions are too small to be filtered out and highly reactive with everything, binding easily to all other metals. Doesn't give me much confidence in the quality of the drinking water. I imagine showering every day means breathing it in, as well.

The filtered water is allowed to sit for a while and breathe. Perhaps some of the stuff evaporates. I hope.

Anyway, the garden hasn't sprouted yet. It's been 9 days since the seeds were planted. I'm getting impatient (getting impatient? hah! more like, been impatient all along!) C'mon little guys, let's show some green here. Shake a ~~leg~~ leaf!

Authenticity

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Mon, 6 Feb 12 10:08:00 UT

How many times have you been adjured to "be yourself" as if it were some kind of Eternal Verity and you were not measuring up? Individualism is an American virtue and it has become a club with which to attack people, especially the young.

And, at the same time, sometimes by the same person, were you pressured to conform to some cultural standard? Over and over again, for example, ads that try to sell us stuff, the message being (by implication) that we're not good enough. We're unintelligent, ugly, fat, and poor. We don't have the latest gadget, so we're lacking and behind the times. We aren't skinny, so we're bad people, or at the very least, risible.

So what's a person to do? How to deal with the resultant cognitive dissonance? Buy, buy, buy, in a frantic effort to resolve the split has certainly been the answer for many people. 'If I only can get the right hair color, the perfect makeup, the most expensive shoes, the right running shorts...' and the scramble continues.

Authenticity is my answer, avoiding the destructive search for non-existent perfection, modeled on some ad maker's guilt trip, on the one hand, and a self-absorbed self-indulgent laziness that says, I'm perfect the way I am and not going to change or conform to anybody's expectations, on the other.

It means recognizing and enjoying your strengths; it means acknowledging and strategizing for your weaknesses; and it means finding ways to facilitate your personal growth as it works for you, not necessarily as society defines it for you.

Tall order.

While Surfing the Net....

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Sun, 5 Feb 12 08:32:00 UT

While surfing the Net, I came across a biographical bit about Newt Gingrinch. Seems that in 2006 he was given an award by the Ataturk Society of America, which presented the ASA Leadership Award to Speaker Newt Gingrich "for commemoration of his contributions to publicizing Ataturk's Legacy" in the House Caucus Room on May 16, 2006.

Gingrich has frequently written and spoken about Ataturk, praising his efforts to secularize the public life of Turkey, creating a state free of religious control, even banning wearing of religious garments in the workplace.

This is the same Gingrich, is it, who has spoken of American secularism as a nightmare, driving God out of public life. He has said that anti-religious bigotry is responsible for the decline in Americal morals. At length, repeatedly, to the delight of Tea Party faithfuls.

So is he for secularism or against it? Or does he favor a specifically Christian state while speaking out against a Muslim one?

Or does he just want to make a point, win an argument, at any cost, regardless of the larger truth?

Watts Towers

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Fri, 3 Feb 12 20:37:00 UT

Going with friends on the Metro tomorrow to visit Watts Towers and have lunch, then take the Metro back. Should be lovely weather, good company, interesting destination. I used to teach in that part of the city, bounded by Jordan Downs and Nickerson Gardens and Imperial Courts.

Haven't been back there in 20 years. Huge demographic changes since then, and a lot of political and social events.

Welfare Fraud

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Thu, 2 Feb 12 08:43:00 UT

I don't have any first-hand experiences of Medicare/Medicaid fraud, so I really can't speak to that issue.

However, during my teaching career in south central Los Angeles and also in the area called "the jungle", I was working with and teaching in a community where there were many welfare recipients.

In the hundreds of families I dealt with, I came across only two cases of fraud, one in which a woman was getting multiple welfare checks using multiple identities, and the other where children were being shared, to increase the family size (so much money per child) and hence the amount of the award.

I came across the latter quite by accident as a third grade teacher (7- and 8-year-olds). At the beginning of each year, teachers are required to make out attendance cards with the child's name, address, birthdate, and so forth, and take attendance daily.

One child was absent nearly 50% of the time (and qualified for free lunches and health exam if I could only get a parental signature) and I had no luck contacting the family--no working telephone, no one home when I visited, no response to notes.

As grade level chairperson, I organized a committee to see if we could contact parents by comparing names and addresses, looking for neighboring families who might be able to help us.

We found the child in my class was also enrolled in another third grade class under a different last name, different address, same birthdate. I wasn't sure at first, but on a day when "my" child was absent I peeked into the other classroom and there he was, his other 50% attendance.

I was angry, not so much at the fraud, but at the fact that the child had been taught to lie and had been put at risk. When I asked him what his real name was, he didn't know. He said he had two names and they were both his. He seemed confused and unsure, though he wasn't afraid of me, because I was as non-threatening as possible. It wasn't his fault.

Even though I said nothing about it, the state auditors found the fraudlent claim and denied both families welfare support. They went from being poor to being destitute. The children were put into foster care and I never saw him again. I've often wondered what happened to him.

Should I have said something to the "mothers" right away? Had I known that there could be such dire repercussions, I think I would have.

And the Programmer Said...

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Wed, 1 Feb 12 08:13:00 UT

Ganked from bOING bOING:

A preacher, a mechanical engineer, and a programmer are in a car driving down the mountain, when the brakes fail.

As the car screams around bends and barely hangs on to curves, the mechanical engineer shouts, "Hang on to my belt, I'm going to lean out and check the brake lines."

The preacher intones, "Pray we make it down safely."

The programmer says, "Let's take it back to the top and see if it does it again."

Reboot.

Glasses: The Trilogy

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Tue, 31 Jan 12 15:59:00 UT

Went to my local pharmacy for cheap-o production reading glasses. They had all kinds of them on display, in 3-packs, too, just as you said (thank you).

To my surprise, there was no problem finding the right strength, but the frame sizes were all too narrow for my skull in the major display (cue "fat head" jokes here--go ahead, you know you want to).

I always have to get frames made for men when I get prescription glasses, so that shouldn't have been a surprise at all. On my way to the checkout counter I saw a display of reading glasses in the men's grooming supplies section of the store. Found the perfect pair--for $3 cheaper!

So now I have a downstairs pair as well as an upstairs pair. Life is good.

Time to find something else to obsess over. Same old topics get boring--though you will be subjected to a leaf-by-leaf tally of the garden, once the seed leaves appear. I'll try not to be too obnoxious.

Wait! Was that a flash of vegetable green? No, just a wayward weed. Drat.

Scratching an Itch

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Tue, 31 Jan 12 09:33:00 UT

The strangest things you learn via the Internet. And the things scientists will choose to study!

The latest: scratching an itch is more satisfying or less pleasurable, depending on where the itch occurs (arm, ankle, back).

Never thought about it before.

The Garden, The Garden

ssmith04@hotmail.com — Mon, 30 Jan 12 09:20:00 UT

Yesterday, all afternoon and into the dark by flashlight, we planted the garden. You know, I'm of the persuasion that if enough is good, too much is better. And there is no such thing as too much garden. Hah.

We planted summer squash and zucchini in the front lawn and put a tiny white fence around each mound to keep them from being stepped on.

In the back we planted beets and peas and chard. We have been getting veggies from a farm nearby and we are sick to death of carrots and celery. Not to mention broccoli. I'm sure we'll recover once we've had something different to eat for a while--and soup isn't soup without carrots and celery.

No radishes. Oh, yes, spinach. How could I forget? I love spinach, especially raw in salads. The two Better Boy tomatoes went into big pots. Pretty early for tomatoes, but I don't think we're going to get a frost.

We will have to keep an eye out for the possum. I don't know if it will eat our garden once it sprouts? If it does, I'll have to fence it in. Possums never bothered the tomatoes (which are relatives of the nightshade and really just cultivated weeds), but I haven't planted tender veggies in a long time and don't know what the wildlife will take a fancy to.

I checked this morning. No sprouts yet. I'll keep you posted (you know I obsess over every leaf and bud).

I didn't see any jerusalem artichoke starters in the nursery. I have a tub to put them in if I ever find any. Yummy!